New fire code regulations subject of Ooltewah development debate

A diagram of the under construction Wellington subdivision in Ooltewah. (From: Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency)

OOLTEWAH, Tenn. (WDEF)- New fire code regulations passed by the Hamilton County Commission last week are already being put to the test.

These new regulations say two entrances to the same subdivision with more than 200 homes can be as close as 300 feet for emergency access.

Previously, this was higher to match international fire code standards.

According to current designs, the under construction Wellington subdivision along Ooltewah-Georgetown Road has a gap of 474 feet between their entrances.

The developer believes this puts them in compliance with the new regulations.

However, concerned neighbors say that this should not be approved as they argue this is not compatible with those standards.

Developer Mike Price told the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency, “The way the language is written it’s clear, 300 feet is the minimum, and he will make that determination and bring it before this body next month, and at that point, we will all know exactly what the fire marshal’s decision is.”

Concerned resident Kim Helton disagrees with this interpretation, saying, “It still does have that distance requirement of one half the length the diagonal dimension of the property, measured in a straight line between the two distances.”

The Planning Commission elected to defer this matter for a month.